YouTube plans to make dozens of new ad-supported programs

YouTube is ramping up its efforts to be a destination for premium content by producing a slate of new, original programs that can be viewed for free.

YouTube plans to make dozens of new ad-supported programs available on its popular video website, the company said in a blog post Thursday, including unscripted shows produced by comedian Kevin Hart, talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres and the comedy duo Rhett & Link.

The push underscores YouTube’s ambitions to compete with leading subscription services such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu in the burgeoning online video market. Global revenue from online TV and video services is expected to reach $42 billion in 2020, more than twice the estimated $19 billion recorded in 2015, according to Digital TV Research.

The Google-owned company also plans to increase spending on YouTube Red, spending hundreds of millions of dollars to create more than 40 original shows and movies in the next year, Bloomberg reported. Subscribers to the $10-a-month service can watch all of YouTube’s videos ad-free, as well as save videos to their phones or tablets to watch online.